


Les Belles et les Cloches

by GenkiGirl



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age: Origins
Genre: F/F, Reunion, its femslash friday lads, kissthepope
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-29
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:15:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22945396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GenkiGirl/pseuds/GenkiGirl
Summary: Leliana is Divine. After a long time apart, the Warden finally returns. The open return of the Divine's common, Elven lover causes a stir in the clergy. Tabris greatly enjoys making her grand entrance.
Relationships: Leliana/Female Tabris (Dragon Age), Leliana/Female Warden (Dragon Age), Leliana/Warden (Dragon Age)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 38





	Les Belles et les Cloches

The bells of the Grand Cathedral rang clear under the cold winter sun. The congregation shivered and shuddered as they slowly shuffled their way inside, eager to witness today's special ceremony. Whispers and murmurs rippled through the crowd; Divine Victoria would only ever hold such a grand event for important purposes, and the people were keen to discover what that would entail.

While the populace were taking their places standing inside the grand domed hall, in an antechamber far beyond the reach of the public, away from prying eyes, a woman dressed in the garb of the clergy stood before a mirror, admiring her reflection. She winced as her hair is brushed a little too roughly by her companion.

"Cassandra! You can stand to be a little more gentle, you know. I haven't seen her in so long, I'd like to have some hair left so she doesn't think me bald!" Cassandra grunted in a half-apologetic tone.

"This would be a lot easier if you could keep control of your _creatures_. They shouldn't even be in here in the first place - how did you sneak them past the grand chancellor?" Leliana smirked in response,

"You _know_ a nightingale has her secrets; and for the last time, Cassandra, they're called nugs. They'll hear if you are mean to them, and they'll get upset. You really shouldn't talk about them like that to their little faces."

Cassandra looked down disapprovingly at a nug that had started nibbling at her boot, and for a second thought about retaliating; but then she decided it was perhaps a better idea not to argue with the new divine on this of all days. Rather, she set aside the hairbrush she had been using, and fetched the tall traditional headpiece to be used for ceremonies. Placing it upon Leliana's head, she stepped back to admire her friend.

Leliana stared at her own reflection for a second, before turning to Cassandra.

"Well, how do I look?" She paused for a second before responding;

"Most holy." The two women shared a laugh for a second, alleviating some of the tension that had started to descend upon them. "Are you nervous, Leliana?" Leliana's smile dropped a little at that.

"Truthfully, I am. There is no one in the world I admire and love more than her - but what if she doesn't feel the same way about me any more?" Cassandra scoffed.

"Then I'm sure she wouldn't have spent years writing you every detail of her adventures - and what woman alive could refuse Divine Victoria?" Leliana, now clad in her bright and shimmering ritual robes, turned away.

"That's just it... With her, I don't feel like I am the divine. With her, I feel like I'm just a lost bard on the road in Ferelden again, keeping company with strange people, so unsure of the future. She makes me feel young and carefree, but also... vulnerable. It scares me; and with the clergy being how they are-"

"Do not listen to them." Cassandra's defiant interruption shocked her. "The clergy have no business in the private life of the divine. The warden is the hero of Ferelden, and I personally can think of no better match." A small smile started to creep across Leliana's face before her friend grabbed her by the shoulders, bringing her close, "You must show them your strength, and the strength of your love today. Orlais is watching. The world is watching you." 

Cassandra pulled her into a warm hug, cut short only by bells ringing out once more, signalling that the cathedral doors were closing, and the ceremony was soon to begin.

"It's time to go, Victoria. Your flock awaits you."

*** * ***

Lay sisters cleared the aisle of the hall, hushed whispers echoing and bouncing off the walls. The crowd rivaled in numbers the Satinalia service, and excitement hung heavy in the air as the final bell rung out, and the great doors were closed. The congregation waited with baited breath through the first part of the ceremony, while chanters recited the most popular verses from the Canticle of Andraste. Once the chanters had dispersed, the divine made her entrance from the east wing of the cathedral, her right hand waiting in the shadows, ever-present.

Leliana made her way to stand before the sunburst throne, the winter sun pouring in through the stained glass behind her, basking her in a resplendent halo of light. As she stood before her faithful, a quiet hush fell like a blanket over those gathered there; few had had such a chance to see Divine Victoria in all her holy glory, and all, even the clergy so used to such a sight, were enraptured by her bliss. Her voice rang out clear into the room.

"Brothers and sisters, I have gathered you here today to celebrate a most momentous occasion." Leliana took a moment to observe the faces before her. The public were squashed in at the back of the hall, closest to the doors. She recognised many faces from the clergy, seated on pews close to the front. She allowed herself a private smile, imagining the reaction to what she was about to announce. There was a certain sense of vindication in this that appealed to her so very much.

"I have served you as I believed best; with the circles broken, we have ushered in a new age of peace, after such troubled times. But this glorious peace could not have been brought about had the world not been saved once before." She glanced down at the faces of the chancellors, a few of them seeming confused or lost, wondering where she was going with this. "We in Orlais owe much to the hero of Ferelden, Bogdana Tabris, for her service to the Grey Wardens, and for quelling the blight that threatened all of Thedas many years ago."

Taking a deep breath, Leliana composed herself, readying for what was about to come. According to her plan, according to the script she herself had penned, the next line would forever change the face of the chantry in all of Thedas. She hoped it would also change how Orlesians treated elves, how the rich treated the poor; it had to. If she couldn't change Orlais with this, then perhaps her beloved homeland would never move on. Dissolving the circle, uniting the church officials under her leadership, she had already made her name as a radical divine. After today though, she would not have to take the next steps alone. She was ready.

"We welcome her to her new home today, as a hero." The crowd rippled with murmurs of shock and excitement. Leliana continued, "I welcome her home today, as my lover." A moment of silence fell. The bells rang out, right on time, and the doors were thrown open once more as Warden Tabris herself marched in, clad in grey warden armour, escorted by a small ceremonial guard.

Noise immediately filled the air. The clanging of the bells was met with screams from the crowd. Chancellors in the front row jumped up, yelling profanities that were lost in the din; there were some cheering in joy, plenty shouting angry words, but many simply stood in shock and awe.

The warden marched down the aisle of the chantry, perhaps a little too quickly, to stand before the divine. The two women stood there for a second, taking each other in. They had both aged since they last saw each other; both had changed. But as Tabris smiled warmly up at her, Leliana realised that the love between them hadn't changed at all in the last decade. She felt a flush creep over her as the warden climbed the steps to stand beside her. She took Leliana's hand in her own, bowed deeply, and reverently kissed her knuckles. Leliana held onto that hand tightly for comfort.

As the two turned to face the people of Orlais together, hand in hand, they observed as the lay brothers and lay sisters tried to put a stop to the chaos that had erupted. Cassandra stood in the shadows, watching and smirking. A wry smile crept across Leliana's lips; causing a scene like this, with the warden at her side, truly made her feel as though she too, had come home. Tabris leaned in to give her a chaste peck on the cheek, which only served to cause more uproar in the crowd. They had their work cut out for them, that was for sure; but with Tabris at her side, Leliana felt as though she could conquer any obstacle. She felt ready to change the world.

Leliana turned to her lover, grateful to be in her arms once more after all these years, now with a promise of forever. She couldn't help but let out a happy little laugh at the prospect. "Welcome home, my dearest."


End file.
